The 1882 Australia v England series was at the time considered to be part of another first-class cricket tour of England, by a combined team from the Australian colonies, but the match arranged between the Australians and an England side was later accepted to be a Test match. Although it was not known at the time, the one-off match played at The Oval in south London would become the birth of The Ashes.

The English side had lost the previous tour to Australia, but had remained undefeated at home by visiting Australian sides. Australian victory for the first time in England was widely condemned in the English press, including the publication of a satirical obituary which stated that English cricket had died, and the body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia. The English media then dubbed the next English tour to Australia in 1882–83 as the quest to regain The Ashes.

Despite the Australia v England match later receiving Test status, and being the match that triggered the birth of The Ashes, the 1882 match is not considered to be part of The Ashes since it precedes the introduction of the trophy.

Billy Murdoch won the toss for Australia and chose to bat first. The decision proved a poor one though, as Australia were easily skittled out for a meagre 63 in 80 overs, taking just over 2 hours. The captain himself tried to offer resistance with a slow defensive 13, and experienced wicket-keeper/batsman Jack Blackham top-scored with 17, but the only other batsman to reach double-figures was Tom Garrett with 10. Inspired bowling from opening bowler Ted Peate who took 4 for 31, and Dick Barlow who produced a devastating 5 for 19, ripped the Australian batting order apart on a greenish wicket that gave more assistance that it first seemed.

England began their run chase with openers Dick Barlow and WG Grace, but 'The Doctor' was unable to reproduce his usual heroics, clean bowled by the express pace of Fred Spofforth for 4. A steady succession of wickets followed with only George Ulyett (26 off 59 balls) and Maurice Read (19 off 54 balls) providing any real resistance as Spofforth's pure pace provided too much firepower for the England line-up to deal with. He collected 7 for 46 off 36.3 overs including an astonishing 18 maidens. Four of his seven dismissals were clean bowled. Despite Spofforth's excellent bowling, England had established a first-innings lead of 38, being all out for 101. Stumps were called at the end of England's first innings.

The second day began with Australia beginning their second innings. The opening pair of Alick Bannerman and Hugh Massie fared much better than in the first innings, putting on 66 for the first wicket - more than the whole team's total in the first innings. The loss of Massie triggered a mini-collapse with Australia losing 4 for 13 over the next few overs before captain Billy Murdoch added a much-needed 29, but the last four wickets then fell for eight runs. Bannerman was top scorer with a well made 55, and Australia were all out for 122 in 63 overs, an overall lead of 84.

The Australians were greatly demoralised by the manner of their second-innings collapse, but fast bowler Fred Spofforth, spurred on by some gamesmanship on the part of his opponents, refused to give in. "This thing can be done," he declared. Already on a high from his career best 7 for 46 in the first innings, he set about the destruction of England in the second.

England had reached 15 when Spofforth clean bowled England captain Albert Hornby for 9. He removed Dick Barlow also clean bowled the very next ball to find himself on a hat trick. W G Grace and George Ulyett then put together a partnership of 36 before Spofforth had Ulyett caught behind for 11. Grace fell two runs later, caught by Bannerman off the bowling of Harry Boyle for 32. England were stuttering at 53 for 4, still needing 31 more for victory.

A sluggish 12 off 55 balls from wicket-keeper Alfred Lyttelton took England on to 66 for 5, but he then had his middle-stump dramatically uprooted by Spofforth. Steel was caught and bowled by Spofforth for a third-ball duck, and Read was clean bowled for a second-ball duck in the same over. When Lucas was likewise bowled by Spofforth for 5, England were 75 for 8, needing just 10 more runs for victory, but with just two wickets remaining.

The tension was unbearable; contemporary accounts famously report that one spectator dropped dead and another gnawed through the handle of his umbrella. The very next over from the other end, Harry Boyle removed Barnes for 2 and then, with the last ball of his over, clean bowled Ted Peate for 2 to have England all out for 77 off exactly 55 overs.

England's innings had lasted a mere 122 minutes, destroyed by the pace of Spofforth, who bettered his first innings career best by two runs, collecting 7 for 44, to give him match figures of 14 for 90, both of which would remain his finest figures. Spofforth's performance included a burst of four wickets for only two runs to leave England just seven runs short of victory in one of the closest and most nail-biting finishes in the history of cricket.

At first the crowd fell deathly silent, unable to fathom how England had collapsed so dramatically. Then as the fine bowling display sank in, they rushed onto the field to congratulate Spofforth and Boyle for their remarkable achievement.

England's astonishing collapse had shocked the English public, and the press savaged the players. It was the first time England had been beaten in England.
On 31 August, in the great Charles Alcock-edited magazine Cricket: A Weekly Record of The Game, there appeared a now-obscure mock obituary:

SACRED TO THE MEMORY

OF

ENGLAND'S SUPREMACY IN THE

CRICKET-FIELD

WHICH EXPIRED

ON THE 29TH DAY OF AUGUST, AT THE OVAL

----

"ITS END WAS PEATE"

----

Two days later, on 2 September, a second, more celebrated mock obituary, written by Reginald Brooks under the pseudonym "Bloobs", appeared in The Sporting Times. It read as follows:

In Affectionate Remembrance

of

ENGLISH CRICKET,

which died at the Oval

on

29th AUGUST 1882,

Deeply lamented by a large circle of sorrowing

friends and acquaintances

----

R.I.P.

----

N.B. — The body will be cremated and the

ashes taken to Australia.

Ivo Bligh fastened onto this notice and promised that, on the tour to Australia in 1882–83 (which he was to captain), he would regain "those ashes". He spoke of them again several times over the course of the tour, and the Australian media quickly caught on. The three-match series resulted in a two-one win to England, notwithstanding a fourth match, won by the Australians, whose status remains a matter of ardent dispute.

In the twenty years following Bligh's campaign, the term "The Ashes" largely disappeared from public use. There is no indication that this was the accepted name for the series—at least not in England. The term became popular again in Australia first, when George Giffen, in his memoirs (With Bat and Ball, 1899), used the term as if it were well known.[1]

The true and global revitalisation of interest in the concept dates from 1903, when Pelham Warner took a team to Australia with the promise that he would regain "the ashes". As had been the case on Bligh's tour twenty years before, the Australian media latched fervently onto the term, and, this time, it stuck.

1.
England
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England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west, the Irish Sea lies northwest of England and the Celtic Sea lies to the southwest. England is separated from continental Europe by the North Sea to the east, the country covers five-eighths of the island of Great Britain in its centre and south, and includes over 100 smaller islands such as the Isles of Scilly, and the Isle of Wight. England became a state in the 10th century, and since the Age of Discovery. The Industrial Revolution began in 18th-century England, transforming its society into the worlds first industrialised nation, Englands terrain mostly comprises low hills and plains, especially in central and southern England. However, there are uplands in the north and in the southwest, the capital is London, which is the largest metropolitan area in both the United Kingdom and the European Union. In 1801, Great Britain was united with the Kingdom of Ireland through another Act of Union to become the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. In 1922 the Irish Free State seceded from the United Kingdom, leading to the latter being renamed the United Kingdom of Great Britain, the name England is derived from the Old English name Englaland, which means land of the Angles. The Angles were one of the Germanic tribes that settled in Great Britain during the Early Middle Ages, the Angles came from the Angeln peninsula in the Bay of Kiel area of the Baltic Sea. The earliest recorded use of the term, as Engla londe, is in the ninth century translation into Old English of Bedes Ecclesiastical History of the English People. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, its spelling was first used in 1538. The earliest attested reference to the Angles occurs in the 1st-century work by Tacitus, Germania, the etymology of the tribal name itself is disputed by scholars, it has been suggested that it derives from the shape of the Angeln peninsula, an angular shape. An alternative name for England is Albion, the name Albion originally referred to the entire island of Great Britain. The nominally earliest record of the name appears in the Aristotelian Corpus, specifically the 4th century BC De Mundo, in it are two very large islands called Britannia, these are Albion and Ierne. But modern scholarly consensus ascribes De Mundo not to Aristotle but to Pseudo-Aristotle, the word Albion or insula Albionum has two possible origins. Albion is now applied to England in a poetic capacity. Another romantic name for England is Loegria, related to the Welsh word for England, Lloegr, the earliest known evidence of human presence in the area now known as England was that of Homo antecessor, dating to approximately 780,000 years ago. The oldest proto-human bones discovered in England date from 500,000 years ago, Modern humans are known to have inhabited the area during the Upper Paleolithic period, though permanent settlements were only established within the last 6,000 years

2.
England cricket team
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The England cricket team is the team that represents England and Wales in international cricket. Since 1 January 1997 it has been governed by the England and Wales Cricket Board, England and Australia were the first teams to play a Test match, and these two countries together with South Africa formed the Imperial Cricket Conference on 15 June 1909. England and Australia also played the first One Day International on 5 January 1971, Englands first Twenty20 International was played on 13 June 2005, once more against Australia. As of 9 March 2017, England has played 983 Test matches, winning 351, the team has won The Ashes on 32 occasions, the same number as their opponents Australia. England has played 683 ODIs, winning 332, and its record in major ODI tournaments includes finishing as runners-up in three Cricket World Cups, and also in two ICC Champions Trophys, England has also played 89 T20Is, winning 43. They won the ICC World Twenty20 in 2010, and were runners-up in 2016, England are currently ranked fourth in Tests, fifth in ODIs and fifth in T20Is by the ICC. England currently holds the record for the highest ever ODI total of 444, such matches were repeated on numerous occasions for the best part of a century. In 1846 William Clarke formed the All-England Eleven and this team would eventually compete against a United All-England Eleven with annual matches occurring between 1847 and 1856. These matches were arguably the most important contest of the English season if judged by the quality of the players, the first overseas tour occurred in September 1859 with England touring North America. This team had six players from the All-England Eleven, six from the United All-England Eleven and was captained by George Parr, with the outbreak of the American Civil War, attention turned elsewhere. English tourists visited Australia in 1861-62 with this first tour organised as a venture by Messrs Spiers and Pond. Most matches played during tours prior to 1877 were against odds and this first Australian tour were mostly against odds of at least 18/11. The tour was so successful that George Parr led a tour in 1863–64. James Lillywhite led a subsequent England team which sailed on the P&O steamship Poonah on 21 September 1876 and they would play a combined Australian XI, for once on even terms of 11 a side. The match, starting on 15 March 1877 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground came to be regarded as the inaugural Test match, the combined Australian XI won this Test match by 45 runs with Charles Bannerman of Australia scoring the first Test century. At the time, the match was promoted as James Lillywhites XI v Combined Victoria, the teams played a return match on the same ground at Easter,1877, when Lillywhites team avenged their loss with a victory by four wickets. The first Test match on English soil occurred in 1880 with England victorious, – The body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia. As a result of loss the tour of 1882–83 was dubbed by England captain Ivo Bligh as the quest to regain the ashes

3.
Billy Murdoch
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William Lloyd Billy Murdoch was an Australian cricketer who captained the Australian national side in 16 Test matches between 1880 and 1890. This included four tours of England, one of which, in 1882, although Victorian-born, Murdoch was raised in Sydney, and played his Australian domestic cricket for New South Wales, making his first-class debut in 1875. His Test debut came in 1877, in what was classed as the second Test match to be played. Murdoch began his career as a wicket-keeper, but at Test level kept wicket only once, as a batsman, Murdoch scored both the first double century in Test cricket and the first triple century in Australian domestic cricket. In later years, he settled in England, playing county cricket for Sussex, in 1892, he toured South Africa with England and played in one Test match, making him one of the few cricketers to represent more than one international team. Murdochs final first-class match came at the age of 49, in August 1904 and he died in Melbourne in 1911, aged only 56. Murdoch was born in Sandhurst, Victoria, to Gilbert Murdoch and his father was an American of Scottish descent, who had been a corporal in the U. S. Army prior to emigrating from Maryland to Tasmania in 1849. He died shortly before his sons birth, the family moved to New South Wales in the early 1860s. Both Billy Murdoch and his brother, Gilbert, subsequently studied law at the University of Sydney. Billy Murdoch married Jemima Watson daughter of John Boyd Watson on 8 December 1884 at the Free Church of England, Collingwood, Murdoch made his first-class entry in 1875, at the time regarded as the finest wicketkeeper in Australia, and a highly rated right-handed batsman. He played in the second Test match ever played, the 1877 clash against England at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. Later that year, he qualified as a solicitor and opened up a practice, Murdoch & Murdoch, with his brother Gilbert, although it was short-lived, going bankrupt in 1877. Murdoch established himself as one of the eras greatest batsmen over the few years. In 1881–82 he became the first man other than W. G. Grace to score a triple century when, as captain. The innings comprised 38 fours, nine threes,41 twos and 60 singles from all of ten Victorian bowlers and it was this knock which established him in the public reckoning as Australias finest batsman. So unvanquishable was he that Tom Horan was reduced to bowling Leg theory, Murdoch was never far from controversy. His omission as wicketkeeper in the very first Test resulted in Australias premier fast bowler, Fred Spofforth, in 1884 as captain of Australia he was involved in the players strike, where the Australian players refused to play unless they received a greater share of the gate takings. He was also the batsman whose contentious run out caused friction between New South Wales and a visiting English team led by Lord Harris, which caused a spectator riot

4.
W. G. Grace
–
William Gilbert W. G. Grace, MRCS, LRCP was an English amateur cricketer who was important in the development of the sport and is widely considered one of its greatest-ever players. Universally known as W. G. Right-handed as both batsman and bowler, Grace dominated the sport during his career and his technical innovations and enormous influence left a lasting legacy. An outstanding all-rounder, he excelled at all the skills of batting, bowling and fielding. He is held to have invented modern batsmanship, usually opening the innings, he was particularly admired for his mastery of all strokes, and his level of expertise was said by contemporary reviewers to be unique. He generally captained the teams he played for at all levels because of his skill, Grace came from a cricketing family, E. M. Grace was one of his elder brothers and Fred Grace his younger brother. In 1880, they were members of the same England team, Grace took part in other sports also, he was a champion 440-yard hurdler as a young man and played football for the Wanderers. In later life, he developed enthusiasm for golf, lawn bowls and he qualified as a medical practitioner in 1879. Because of his profession, he was nominally an amateur cricketer. He was a competitive player and, although he was one of the most famous men in England, he was also one of the most controversial on account of his gamesmanship. W. G. Grace was born in Downend, near Bristol, on 18 July 1848 at his parents home, Downend House, and was baptised at the local church on 8 August. He was called Gilbert in the circle, except by his mother who called him Willie. His parents were Henry Mills Grace and Martha, who were married in Bristol on Thursday,3 November 1831 and lived out their lives at Downend, where Henry Grace was the local GP. Downend is near Mangotsfield and, although it is now a suburb of Bristol, it was then a village surrounded by countryside. Henry and Martha Grace had nine children in all, the number as Victoria and Albert –. Grace was the child in the family, he had three older brothers, including E. M. and four older sisters. Only Fred, born in 1850, was younger than W. G. Grace began his Cricketing Reminiscences by answering a question he had frequently been asked, i. e. was he born a cricketer. His answer was in the negative because he believed that cricketers are made by coaching and practice, though he adds that if he was not born a cricketer and his father and mother were full of enthusiasm for the game and it was a common theme of conversation at home. All nine children in the Grace family, including the four daughters, were encouraged to play cricket although the girls, Grace claimed that he first handled a cricket bat at the age of two

5.
Fred Spofforth
–
He played in Test matches for Australia between 1877 and 1887, and then settled in England where he played for Derbyshire. In 2011, he was inducted into the ICC Hall of Fame, Spofforth was born in the Sydney suburb of Balmain, the son of Yorkshire-born Edward Spofforth, a bank clerk, and his wife Anna, née McDonnell. Spofforth was thereafter employed by the Bank of New South Wales as a clerk and he began his life as a bowler with underarm lobs but changed his style when he saw the great England quick bowlers on their tour of the colonies in 1863/64. He decided that he would pursue the action and spent many years mastering it. Spofforth came to notice as a member of the New South Wales eighteen in January 1874 when he took two wickets for sixteen in a match against W. G. Although he batted reasonably well during the 1878 and 1880 Australian tours in England, from then he concentrated almost solely on his bowling, Spofforth played his first Test match in 1877 in Melbourne. He had boycotted the First Test because of Jack Blackhams selection as wicket-keeper ahead of Spofforths close friend, Spofforth truly announced himself to the cricketing world on 27 May 1878, when the touring Australians met the MCC at Lords. In this, the match of the tour, the might of the MCC was dismissed twice in one day at the fortress of English cricket for paltry scores of just 33. The colonists won by nine wickets, with Spofforth picking up ten for twenty after first clean-bowling Grace for a duck, tom Felix Horan records that, when he did so, he jumped about two feet in the air, and sang out, Bowled. And at the finish in the dressing-room, he said, Aint I a demon, gesticulating the while in his well-known demonaic style. Whether or not he christened himself the demon, he certainly was a demon bowler, Spofforth confirms this, To myself, it will always be a noteworthy occasion, since it was then that I first earned my popular sobriquet – the Demon. As a consequence of victory, writes Plum Warner, the fame of Australian cricket was established for all time. Spofforth became known forever as The Demon Bowler and he was the bowler whom English batsmen most feared and is also regarded as the one who first brought into the game, as a scaring technique, eye-to-eye contact with the batsman. Spofforth would often stare straight into the eyes to scare. During the 1878 tour Spofforth was credited with as many as 110 wickets at an average of under 10½ runs and this worked to particularly devastating effect in the match that gave birth to the legendary Ashes series, at The Oval on 29 August 1882. The Australians won by seven runs, Spofforth taking match figures of fourteen for ninety and this was the highlight of a brilliant bowling performance which brought him 13 wickets for 110 runs. In February, Spofforth also played for New South Wales against Lord Harris tourists in a game that, on the Saturday, although not noted as a batsman, he once top-scored in a Test from the unlikely starting position of number eleven. He hit 50 against England at Melbourne in 1884–85, the next-highest score by an Australian in the match was 35, in 1882, he set the record for becoming the first bowler to take 3 wickets in 4 balls

6.
The Oval
–
The Oval, currently known for sponsorship reasons as the Kia Oval, is an international cricket ground in Kennington, in the London Borough of Lambeth, South London. The Oval has been the ground of Surrey County Cricket Club since it was opened in 1845. It was the first ground in England to host international Test cricket in September 1880, the final Test match of the English season is traditionally played there. In addition to cricket, The Oval has hosted a number of historically significant sporting events. In 1870, it staged Englands first international match, versus Scotland. It hosted the first FA Cup final in 1872, as well as those between 1874 and 1892, in 1876, it held both the England v Wales and England v Scotland rugby international matches, and in 1877, rugbys first Varsity match. The Oval is built on part of the former Kennington Common, Cricket matches were played on the common throughout the early 18th century. The earliest recorded match was the London v Dartford match on 18 June 1724. However, as the common was used regularly for public executions of those convicted at the Surrey Assizes. Kennington Common was eventually enclosed in the mid 19th century under a scheme sponsored by the Royal Family, in 1844, the site of the Kennington Oval was a market garden owned by the Duchy of Cornwall. Hence, Surrey County Cricket Club was established in 1845, the popularity of the ground was immediate and the strength of the SCCC grew. On 3 May 1875 the club acquired the remainder of the leasehold for a term of 31 years from the Otter Trustees for the sum of £2,800. In 1868,20,000 spectators gathered at The Oval for the first game of the 1868 Aboriginal cricket tour of England, the first tour of England by any foreign side. Thanks to C. W. Alcock, the Secretary of Surrey from 1872 to 1907, the Oval, thereby, became the second ground to stage a Test, after Melbourne Cricket Ground. In 1882, Australia won the Test by seven runs within two days, the Sporting Times printed a mocking obituary notice for English cricket, which led to the creation of the Ashes trophy, which is still contested whenever England plays Australia. The first Test double century was scored at The Oval in 1884 by Australias Billy Murdoch, surreys ground is noted as having the first artificial lighting at a sports arena, in the form of gas-lamps, dating to 1889. The current pavilion was completed in time for the 1898 season, in 1907, South Africa became the 2nd visiting Test team to play a Test match at the ground. In 1928, the West Indies played its first Test match at The Oval, in 1936, India became the fifth foreign visiting Test side to play at The Oval, followed by Pakistan in 1954 and Sri Lanka in 1998

7.
Captain (cricket)
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The captain of a cricket team, often referred to as the skipper, is the appointed leader, having several additional roles and responsibilities over and above those of the other players. Before the game the captains toss for innings, during the match the captain decides the teams batting order, who will bowl each over, and where each fielder will be positioned. While the captain has the final say, decisions are often collaborative, a captains knowledge of the complexities of cricket strategy and tactics, and shrewdness in the field, may contribute significantly to the teams success. Before the start of a match the captain tosses a coin. The captain who wins the toss is given the choice of whether to bat or bowl first, the decision usually depends on the condition of the pitch and whether it is likely to deteriorate, the weather conditions and the weather forecast. The decision also depends on the strengths of the teams batting and bowling. Similarly a side with a weak opening batting pair may choose to bowl first in order to protect their batsmen, the captain decides where the fielders will stand, in consultation with the bowler and sometimes other senior players. The fielding positions will usually be dictated by the type of bowler, the batting style. The captain decides when each bowler will bowl, if the regular bowlers are not achieving the desired results, the captain may decide to use non-regular bowlers to attempt to unsettle the batsmen. The captain may also change the bowlers around to introduce variation, in the longer forms of cricket, when a new ball becomes available the captain decides whether to use it. When the team bats, the captain decides the batting order, in professional cricket the captain usually changes the established batting order only for exceptional reasons, because batsmen tend to specialise in batting at certain positions. However, in certain circumstances it may be in the teams interest to change the batting order, if quick runs are needed, a naturally attacking batsman may be promoted up the order. A player who is in form may be promoted to a higher batting position, if the nightwatchman does get out, the cost of losing a late wicket will have been minimised, because the specialist batsman is still available to bat. In a two-innings match, if the situation arises the captain decides whether to impose the follow-on, the captain is also consulted on whether an injured batsman from the opposing team may use a runner when batting. Permission is usually if the batsman has become injured during the course of the match. As well as decisions taken either immediately before or during a match, for instance, they may decide when the team is to practise, and for how long. Prior to July 2015, the captain was responsible for deciding when to take batting and bowling powerplays in limited overs matches, the captain may be assisted by a vice-captain. This is particularly useful if the captain is forced to leave the field of play during fielding, some teams also allocate the vice-captain a more or less formal role in assisting with team selection, discipline, field-setting and so on

8.
Wicket-keeper
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The wicket-keeper in the sport of cricket is the player on the fielding side who stands behind the wicket or stumps being guarded by the batsman currently on strike. The wicket-keeper is the member of the fielding side permitted to wear gloves. The wicket-keeper may also wear a helmet with a face guard to help protect from injury. It is essentially a specialist role, the role of the keeper is governed by Law 40 of the Laws of Cricket. Initially, during the bowling of the ball the wicket-keeper crouches in a squatting position. Australian wicket-keeper Sammy Carter was the first to squat on his haunches rather than bend over from the waist, sometimes the keeper is also in the best position to catch a ball which has been hit high in the air. More catches are taken by wicket-keepers than by any other fielding position, the keeper can stump the batsman by using the ball to remove the bails from the stumps, if the batsman is out of his crease after a delivery has passed the stumps into keepers hands. The keeper must then dislodge the bail and the batsman is out, when the ball is hit into the outfield, the keeper moves close to the stumps to catch the return throw from a fielder and, if possible, to run out a batsman. The more skilled the keeper, the faster the bowling to which he is able to stand up, wicket-keeping is a specialist discipline and it requires training consistent with the level expected of a specialist batsman or bowler. However, the keeper is also expected to possess reasonable batting skill. They typically bat at number 7 in first class cricket, wicket-keepers who are also capable of batting at the top of the order are known informally as keeper/batsmen and is more typically seen in limited overs cricket. Since there is room for one keeper in a cricket side. One such selection dilemma was that faced by England selectors in the 1990s between Jack Russell and Alec Stewart, the keeper may also have a captaincy role. Uniquely, they are involved in every delivery of an innings. They can frequently be heard encouraging the bowler, and may also indulge in the practice of sledging the batsman with well timed comments about their skill, appearance or personal habits. The Indian wicket-keeper batsman MS Dhoni is a notable wicket-keeper captain who captained India in 331 matches across three formats, next best being Mushfiqur Rahim of Bangladesh. The keeper is the only allowed to touch the ball with protective equipment. The protection offered by the gloves is not always adequate, the England keeper Alan Knott sometimes placed steaks inside his gloves for added cushioning

9.
London
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London /ˈlʌndən/ is the capital and most populous city of England and the United Kingdom. Standing on the River Thames in the south east of the island of Great Britain and it was founded by the Romans, who named it Londinium. Londons ancient core, the City of London, largely retains its 1. 12-square-mile medieval boundaries. London is a global city in the arts, commerce, education, entertainment, fashion, finance, healthcare, media, professional services, research and development, tourism. It is crowned as the worlds largest financial centre and has the fifth- or sixth-largest metropolitan area GDP in the world, London is a world cultural capital. It is the worlds most-visited city as measured by international arrivals and has the worlds largest city airport system measured by passenger traffic, London is the worlds leading investment destination, hosting more international retailers and ultra high-net-worth individuals than any other city. Londons universities form the largest concentration of education institutes in Europe. In 2012, London became the first city to have hosted the modern Summer Olympic Games three times, London has a diverse range of people and cultures, and more than 300 languages are spoken in the region. Its estimated mid-2015 municipal population was 8,673,713, the largest of any city in the European Union, Londons urban area is the second most populous in the EU, after Paris, with 9,787,426 inhabitants at the 2011 census. The citys metropolitan area is the most populous in the EU with 13,879,757 inhabitants, the city-region therefore has a similar land area and population to that of the New York metropolitan area. London was the worlds most populous city from around 1831 to 1925, Other famous landmarks include Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, Piccadilly Circus, St Pauls Cathedral, Tower Bridge, Trafalgar Square, and The Shard. The London Underground is the oldest underground railway network in the world, the etymology of London is uncertain. It is an ancient name, found in sources from the 2nd century and it is recorded c.121 as Londinium, which points to Romano-British origin, and hand-written Roman tablets recovered in the city originating from AD 65/70-80 include the word Londinio. The earliest attempted explanation, now disregarded, is attributed to Geoffrey of Monmouth in Historia Regum Britanniae and this had it that the name originated from a supposed King Lud, who had allegedly taken over the city and named it Kaerlud. From 1898, it was accepted that the name was of Celtic origin and meant place belonging to a man called *Londinos. The ultimate difficulty lies in reconciling the Latin form Londinium with the modern Welsh Llundain, which should demand a form *lōndinion, from earlier *loundiniom. The possibility cannot be ruled out that the Welsh name was borrowed back in from English at a later date, and thus cannot be used as a basis from which to reconstruct the original name. Until 1889, the name London officially applied only to the City of London, two recent discoveries indicate probable very early settlements near the Thames in the London area

10.
Jack Blackham
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John McCarthy Blackham was a Test cricketer who played for Victoria and Australia. A specialist wicket-keeper, Blackham played in the first Test match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in March 1877, such was his skill in the position that he revolutionised the art of wicket-keeping and was known as the prince of wicket-keepers. Late in his career, he captained the Australian team, Blackham was born in the inner-Melbourne suburb of Fitzroy North, the son of newsagent Frederick Kane Blackham and his wife Lucinda. Blackham became a clerk, and held a position in the Colonial Bank of Australasia for many years. It is said that his thick dark beard, perceived then as a sign of an equable and reliable nature and his brother-in-law was George Eugene Joey Palmer. Blackham was included in the first eleven of the Carlton Cricket Club as a batsman at the age of sixteen and he first appeared for the Victorian team in 1874, and remained an automatic selection as the teams wicket-keeper for over twenty years. He was a member of the first eight Australian cricket teams to visit England and he was one of the first wicket-keepers to stand up close to the stumps, even to the fastest bowlers, wearing gloves that Jack Pollard describes as little more than gardening gloves. He eliminated the need for a long-stop, and Pollard says that, Blackham was selected for the very first Test match, held at Melbourne in March 1876/77. Australias leading bowler Fred Spofforth refused to play in the match, in the Test match, Blackham took three catches and made the first Test-Match stumping, when he dismissed Alfred Shaw off the bowling of Tom Kendall in Englands second innings. In 1878, he represented his country for the first time overseas, as a member of the inaugural Australian cricket team to tour England and North America. Described by team-mates as the prince of wicket-keepers and one of Australias first cricketing heroes, Jack Blackham spent most of the 1st day of the 1st Test Match in the Home Dressing Room as he was batting at No,8. He made his Test debut when Ned Gregory, Australia No,7 achieved the distinction of being the 1st Test Batsman to score a duck. He became Charles Bannermans 7th partner, Jack Blackham was 22 years 308 days old and became, at that time the youngest Test player in Test cricket. Previously the youngest had been Tom Horan who was 64 days older than Jack Blackham, as a right-hand batsman, Blackham was a useful lower-order player. At the age of forty, he played his last Test Match at the SCG against Andrew Stoddarts English team, as Blackham spun the coin on that opening morning, Stoddy remarked, Someone will be swearing directly, Jack. It was not, Blackham won the toss and elected to bat, and made 74 runs in a partnership of 154 with Syd Gregory and this helped Australia on its way to a massive total of 586. After England followed on, Blackhams men were left to make just 176 in the final innings to win. They had scored 113 for the loss of just two wickets at the close of play on the evening, but it rained hard during the night

11.
George Giffen
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George Giffen was a cricketer who played for South Australia and Australia. He was inducted into the Australian Cricket Hall of Fame on 26 February 2008, Giffen was born in the Adelaide neighbourhood of Norwood in 1859 to Richard Giffen, a carpenter and his wife Elizabeth. He played cricket with enthusiasm as a boy and attracted the notice of two brothers, Charles and James Gooden, who coached him and he started his cricket career with Norwood Cricket Club, later moving to the West Adelaide club. In November 1877 he made his first-class cricket debut against Tasmania, Giffen made 47 runs and took 4 wickets for 16 runs in the Tasmanian first innings. Tasmania was forced to follow-on and in the second innings Giffen managed to capture another 2 wickets and it was not until November 1880 that the first regular match between South Australia and Victoria took place at Melbourne. Giffen made 3 and 63 and took two wickets for 47 in the first innings, in the follow-up match in Adelaide later that season, Giffen took 5 wickets for 59 runs, Victoria won the match by 151 runs. He became a member of the South Australian team and although he took a few seasons to develop his full powers. Giffen, only 22 years old, made his Test debut in Melbourne against England in 1881–82, having just joined the postal service, Giffen was almost hesitant to ask for leave. Giffen made 30 runs before being bowled by Tom Emmett but was unable to take a wicket, left out of the side for the Second Test in Sydney, he returned for the Third Test. Australia won the match by five wickets by Giffen made only two runs and was not given a chance to bowl, in the final Test of the series, Giffen captured his first Test wicket—William Scotton stumped by Jack Blackham for 27. He took 2/17 and, with the bat, made 14 in a drawn match, Australia won the series two Tests to nil. Giffen was selected to tour England with the Australian team in 1882 and he was moderately successful, taking 32 wickets at an average of 21.84 and making 699 runs averaging 19.02. In the celebrated match against England—later designated a Test match—Giffen made 2 runs in the first innings but was dismissed by Ted Peate for a duck in the second, Australia, through a magnificent bowling effort from Fred Spofforth and Harry Boyle, won the match by seven runs. The match was the origin of the term The Ashes for Test series between the two nations, a mock obituary placed in The Sporting Times lamented the death of English cricket and noted that The body will be cremated and the ashes taken to Australia. Ivo Bligh and his English team arrived in Australia in 1882–83 determined to win back the Ashes, in the First Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, Giffen made 36 runs, his highest Test score to date. He followed this with his best figures with the ball, capturing 4/38 in the England second innings, helping Australia to a nine wicket victory. In the Second Test, Giffen made a duck, dismissed first ball without scoring but took 4/89 in Englands only innings. Giffen was promoted to open the batting for the Third Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground, in February 1884, Giffen became the first Australian to take all ten wickets in a first-class innings, taking 10/66 for an Australian XI against the Rest

12.
The Ashes
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The Ashes is a Test cricket series played between England and Australia. The Ashes are regarded as being held by the team that most recently won the Test series, the term originated in a satirical obituary published in a British newspaper, The Sporting Times, immediately after Australias 1882 victory at The Oval, their first Test win on English soil. The obituary stated that English cricket had died, and the body will be cremated, the mythical ashes immediately became associated with the 1882–83 series played in Australia, before which the English captain Ivo Bligh had vowed to regain those ashes. The English media therefore dubbed the tour the quest to regain the Ashes, after England had won two of the three Tests on the tour, a small urn was presented to Bligh by a group of Melbourne women including Florence Morphy, whom Bligh married within a year. The contents of the urn are reputed to be the ashes of a wooden bail and it is not clear whether that tiny silver urn is the same as the small terracotta urn given to the MCC by Blighs widow after his death in 1927. The urn has never been the trophy of the Ashes series. However, replicas of the urn are often held aloft by victorious teams as a symbol of their victory in an Ashes series. Since the 1998–99 Ashes series, a Waterford Crystal representation of the Ashes urn has been presented to the winners of an Ashes series as the trophy of that series. An Ashes series is traditionally of five Tests, hosted in turn by England, as of August 2015, England holds the Ashes, having won three of the five Tests in the 2015 Ashes series. Australia and England have won 32 series each and five series have been drawn, the first Test match between England and Australia was played in Melbourne, Australia, in 1877, though the Ashes legend started later, after the ninth Test, played in 1882. On their tour of England that year the Australians played just one Test and it was a low-scoring affair on a difficult wicket. Australia made a mere 63 runs in its first innings, and England, led by A. N. Hornby, took a 38-run lead with a total of 101. In their second innings, the Australians, boosted by a spectacular 55 runs off 60 deliveries from Hugh Massie, managed 122 and this thing can be done, he declared. Spofforth went on to devastate the English batting, taking his final four wickets for two runs to leave England just eight runs short of victory. When Ted Peate, Englands last batsman, came to the crease, his side needed just ten runs to win, an astonished Oval crowd fell silent, struggling to believe that England could possibly have lost to a colony on home soil. When it finally sank in, the crowd swarmed onto the field, cheering loudly and chairing Boyle, when Peate returned to the pavilion he was reprimanded by his captain for not allowing his partner, Charles Studd, to get the runs. Peate humorously replied, I had no confidence in Mr Studd, sir, the momentous defeat was widely recorded in the British press, which praised the Australians for their plentiful pluck and berated the Englishmen for their lack thereof. A celebrated poem appeared in Punch on Saturday,9 September and it read, In Affectionate Remembrance of ENGLISH CRICKET, which died at the Oval on 29 August 1882, Deeply lamented by a large circle of sorrowing friends and acquaintances R. I. P